The Five Scarves - Elemental Control Part 1
by RaceProUK
Summary: (Book 2 of 3, Part 1 of 5) Two weeks have passed since the destruction of the Elementals, and life for Hanna and Rob has returned to normal; at least, as normal as life can be for two veteran Red Scarves. The last thing they expected was for some Elementals to have survived...
1. Chapter 1

"Is that all you got?" Hanna challenges.

"I'm just getting started!" Rob retorts.

Hanna, teeth bared in unrestrained aggression, launches herself at Rob, nunchaku swinging swiftly for a body blow. Rob counters, hooking the nunchaku with his sai in an attempted disarming; Hanna spins round Rob, nunchaku sliding off the sai. She drops low, attempting a sweeping kick; Rob leaps the attack, rolling into a dive, sai first, aiming to pin Hanna to the floor. Hanna rolls out the way just in time; Rob's sai glance off the hardwood boards as he reacts.

"You won't get me that easily!" Hanna goads, finishing her roll in a low stance, ready to pounce again.

Rob rolls onto his feet, sai raised. "Just wait till I start trying…"

With a snarl, Rob charges Hanna, sai gripped so the monouchi and yoku protrude from his fists. Hanna ducks the first punch, deflects the second, and turns the blocking into a shoulder thrust, knocking Rob off his feet; as he tumbles, he hooks Hanna's double-baldric, pulling her off-balance. Both fighters hit the ground together, rolling over each other; when they stop, Rob has Hanna pinned, face down, the tips of both sai resting on the back of her neck.

"Surrender!" Rob demands.

"OK, OK, I surrender," Hanna sighs. "You can choose the restaurant. Now get off me."

* * *

Practice weapons returned to the dojo storage, Hanna and Rob make their way out to the streets of Shang Mu, and start towards the restaurant of Rob's choice. Hanna is carrying her double-baldric, inspecting it for damage sustained while sparring.

"You broke one of the belt hooks," Hanna remarks, putting the double-baldric on.

"I'll fix it when we get home," Rob offers.

"Wouldn't have happened if you hadn't pulled that dirty trick."

"You'd have done the same thing."

Hanna thinks for a moment. "Yeah, I would have," she smiles.

They round the corner onto the street the restaurant is on; outside the restaurant is a sizeable police presence. Stopping suddenly, both Hanna and Rob hastily remove their red scarves, pocketing them.

"For some strange reason, I'm not feeling all that hungry anymore," Rob states quietly.

"But we haven't done anything illegal," Hanna replies. "Not today anyway."

"Then lead on."

Hanna hesitates. "I have a better idea: I'll cook tonight."


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning, Rob is watching a news programme while repairing the damage to Hanna's double-baldric; the reporter is covering the events at the restaurant the previous evening. As the report ends, Hanna enters the den, dressed in her bathrobe, towel wrapping her hair.

"I thought you were fixing that yesterday?" she asks.

"I forgot," Rob answers, "so I'm doing it now."

Hanna notices the news programme on the television. "Anything about the commotion at the restaurant yesterday?"

"One of our fellow Scarves got cocky."

"That doesn't explain why there were so many cops at the scene though."

"We've evaded larger; remember how many were chasing us out of Shuigang three weeks ago?"

"That was cross-country," Hanna reminds. "It's easier when you can hide in the woods."

"Or crash."

Hanna fixes Rob with narrowed eyes.

"Sorry, couldn't resist," Rob smirks; Hanna's look softens. "So you think there's some sort of cover-up?" Rob continues.

"Possibly," Hanna theorises.

Rob thinks for a moment. "I can't think of anything that would need covering up."

"Me neither," Hanna admits, "but I cannot help but feel there's more to this than the police are willing to reveal."

"You're over-thinking it."

Hanna makes to reply, but can't think of a retort. Sighing in defeat, she retreats to the bedroom.

* * *

Ten minutes later, Hanna returns to the den, fully dressed. Her double-baldric lies on the table, repairs complete. Hanna picks it up and checks Rob's handiwork; satisfied, she puts it on. Looking around, she notices Rob has disappeared.

"Rob?" she asks out loud.

"Kitchen," comes the response.

Hanna joins Rob in the kitchen; he's preparing breakfast.

"Nice work on the belt hook," Hanna compliments.

"Thanks," Rob responds. "You may be right," he continues after a moment's pause.

"About what?"

"About the suspiciously large police presence at the restaurant last night."

Hanna eyes Rob quizzically. "Don't toy with me."

"I'm not," Rob assures. "The more I think about it, the more I find it hard to correlate the number of officers present with the story of a lone Scarf being cornered and arrested. It looked a lot more like the sort of force sent to shut down a black market operation."

"But why would they want to cover that up?" Hanna asks, puzzled.

"Exactly," Rob answers cryptically.


	3. Chapter 3

Early afternoon, and Hanna and Rob have returned to Shang Mu, specifically to the vicinity of the restaurant from the previous day. Taking care to keep their distance from the restaurant, they observe the police cordon guarding the main entrance.

"There's definitely something going on," Hanna concludes quietly.

"Agreed, "Rob replies. "If it really was just a Scarf being arrested, the restaurant would be open right now."

"We should come back at night."

"Break in and see what we can find in there."

"Precisely."

* * *

Midnight, and two lithe figures flit between the shadows, approaching the restaurant. Shimmying up a drainpipe on the building a hundred yards away, the figures scurry across the rooftops, and make the short leap to the roof of the restaurant.

Hanna extends her claw, fully regrown in the fortnight since the immolation of the Elementals' compound, and expertly picks the lock on a skylight towards the rear of the building. As she does so, Rob secures a strong rope to a suitable tie-point, and prepares to lower it through the now open skylight. Hanna checks the coast is clear; she signals the affirmative. Rob lowers the rope; within seconds, both intruders are in the building.

They find themselves in a corridor, with an office at one end and the kitchens at the other. Hanna makes straight for the office, and picks the lock. The door creaks open; Hanna winces silently at the noise. She creeps into the room, heading towards the safe in the corner. Rob follows a moment later; he pauses as he notices an eerily familiar symbol hastily painted on the far wall.

"Hanna," Rob hisses, barely audible.

"Shush," Hanna hisses back, ear to the safe door as she tries to crack it.

"Hanna!" Rob responds urgently.

"Shush!"

"Just look!"

Hanna turns away from the safe. "Can't you see I'm work-" she starts, pausing when she notices the symbol.

Five circles joined by lines.

The symbol of the Elementals.

"It looks fresh, no more than a day or two old," Rob concludes.

"But… I killed their leader…" Hanna mutters weakly.

"And torched their compound to the ground."

"We left no-one alive."

"Well, it looks like we missed one."

Hanna remembers what the Ethereal did to her; she shivers as a chill of terror runs down her spine.

"Let's get out of here," she growls in mild panic. "Now."

"Not going to crack the safe first?"

"_No; we go now!_"


	4. Chapter 4

_Hanna feels a tight grip around her neck; she struggles to breathe properly. Her arms feel numb; they hang limp and useless. A cackling malevolence permeates the air around her. The grip tightens; she starts to black out, on the verge of death…_

Hanna wakes with a start, sitting bolt upright, panting; her skin feels like it's on fire, her blood feels like ice in her veins. It takes a moment for her panic to subside; a few deep breaths help to calm her nerves. The sound of Rob's light snoring breaks through the din of blood pumping in her ears; she relaxes, knowing she is safe at home.

Still feeling shaken, she slowly gets out of bed and makes her way to the balcony. The sun is yet to rise; the stiff breeze is refreshingly cooling. Hanna raises her arms, flexing them at the elbow, making sure that they are both present and working correctly. After a few moments, satisfied her arms work properly, she feels round her neck; she is relieved to find only the collar of her nightgown.

With a sigh, she returns to the warmth of the bed. She settles down and tries to fall asleep; she doesn't notice Rob's no longer snoring. He slides across the bed and puts his arm over her, holding her tenderly; Hanna stiffens slightly at the initial contact.

"It's OK," Rob whispers, "it's only me."

Hanna relaxes; a moment later, they both fall asleep.

* * *

The next morning, a light rain falls from a patchwork sky. The inclement weather doesn't appear to bother Hanna though; she is on the balcony, dressed in her nightgown and bathrobe, scanning the treeline through binoculars. After searching for half an hour, she lowers the binoculars, and returns to the bedroom to dry off.

"See anyone?" Rob asks as he exits the bathroom, fresh out of the shower.

Hanna doesn't answer; she tosses the binoculars on the bed, then sits on the end, head in hands.

"Hanna?" Rob asks. "You OK?"

"Yeah," Hanna sighs despondently. "I guess I'm just a bit paranoid, after seeing that infernal symbol last night."

"I don't think it's anything to worry about unduly," Rob assures. "The damage we did to their organisation two weeks back; they won't be recovering from that any time soon."

Hanna lowers her hands. "Not without their leader," she smiles as she remembers taking the Ethereal's life.

"And of course we have all five of the Crystals."

Hanna's expression darkens suddenly. "And that makes us an extremely lucrative target."

"Only if they know we have them. If there's even a 'them' to worry about."

"True," Hanna admits. "But I think we should still be prepared."


	5. Chapter 5

The rest of the day saw Hanna and Rob improving the security precautions throughout the house. The priority was to fortify the doors and windows; reinforced jambs, sills and lintels, combined with internal mesh screening. Additional locks were also added to each. The only area left untouched was the garage; with no internal connection to the house, it was agreed that securing the garage would be wasted time and effort.

* * *

Early evening, and a tired and aching Hanna and Rob are relaxing on the sofa, eyes closed.

"I hope we've done enough," Hanna sighs.

"I'm sure we have," Rob assures.

"It does make our home feel a little too much like a prison though."

"Maybe so, but the difference here is we have the keys."

"Hopefully we don't lose them."

"You can always pick the locks if that happens?" Rob suggests.

Hanna thinks for a moment. "It'll take a while, but yes I could."

A few moments later, Rob realises there's still one task left to do: "We should really secure the Crystals in a safe."

"But we don't have one."

"Yet."

"You want to get one now?"

"Why wait?"

"OK," Hanna sighs, getting up and stretching. "Let's go."

* * *

A few hours later, Hanna and Rob return with a safe large enough to hold the Crystals yet small enough to be carried by two people. They place it on the table; Hanna fetches the Wood, Earth and Water Crystals from their shelf.

"We should hide this in the bedroom," Rob suggests.

"Inside the weapon chest?" Hanna adds.

"Good idea."

Hanna places the Crystals inside the safe; the Fire and Metal Crystals remain secured in their double‑baldrics. With the door closed and locked, the safe is carried to the bedroom, and hidden inside the weapon chest.

"Here's an interesting question," Hanna remarks as Rob closes the weapon chest. "Don't you find it ironic we're securing stolen gemstones in a stolen safe, in order to prevent them being stolen?"


	6. Chapter 6

Despite the security enhancements, sleep doesn't come easily to Hanna that night. No matter how hard she tries, she just cannot get the thought that someone is watching the house out of her mind. A task not helped by her sensitive hearing picking up every little noise; even the most mundane and familiar sound takes on a sinister undercurrent.

Eventually, she cannot resist; she must patrol the house, and be sure that there are no intruders.

Sliding out of bed, Hanna drops onto all-fours. She prowls out of the room, down the stairs, pausing as she enters the den. Listening to all the noises; the gentle patter of the night rain, the light rustle of leaves in the breeze. Satisfied the noises are normal, Hanna continues her patrol, staying on all-fours to remain out of view from the windows.

Hanna freezes as she spots a suspicious form crumpled near the front door. In the low light, it's not possible to work out what it is. Electing to employ the element of surprise, Hanna crouches low, claws extended. She pounces, sinking her claws deep in the target; the den fills with the sound of tearing fabric as Hanna shreds through her victim.

The room suddenly fills with light; Hanna jumps in surprise, landing awkwardly and rolling into the door with a clatter.

"When you're done shredding my cloak, let me know," Rob sighs, hand dropping from the light‑switch.

Hanna, still wide-eyed in surprise, looks at the shredded remains of the cloak; realising her mistake, she hangs her head in shame. "Sorry," she mutters quietly.

"We'll sort it out tomorrow," Rob assures with a warm smile.

Hanna slowly stands up, cloak in hand. She hangs the cloak back on the coat‑stand; strips of fabric fall from the cloak. With a sigh, Hanna trudges over to Rob. "Guess I'll have to get a replacement," she admits.

"There's no rush" Rob winks, turning the light off. "I hardly ever wear the thing anyway."

Together, they ascend the stairs and return to the bedroom. As they climb into bed, Rob freezes as he spots something on the balcony. He squints; not something, some_one_. A stranger fully enclosed in a black cloak, marked with the symbol of the Elementals.

"What's the matter now?" Hanna asks as she settles down under the covers, her back to the balcony.

"There's someone on the balcony," Rob answers.

"Don't," Hanna sighs. "I've had enough surprises for one night."

"I'm not joking; there's someone on the balcony."

Hanna sighs and rolls over to look; she leaps out of bed with a snarl when she spots the stranger, landing in a fighting stance, claws at full extension, growling deeply.

The stranger moves. A blinding flash of light; when Hanna and Rob's vision recovers, the stranger has disappeared. In place, there is a small black box. Rob decides to investigate; he walks slowly out onto the balcony, Hanna following behind. Rob approaches the box cautiously; he slowly reaches down and picks the box up.

"What is it?" Hanna asks.

"No idea," Rob mutters, turning the box over, looking for markings.

Hanna's ears prick. "It's ticking."

Rob raises the box to his ear. "You're right, it _is_ ticking."

A moment later, Hanna and Rob realise what the box is; they exchange a panicked look.

"_BOMB!_" they yell in unison.

Rob throws the box away from the house with all his strength; he and Hanna throw themselves flat to the balcony floor.

The box soars towards the treeline; just before it strikes the tips of the nearest branches, it explodes.

The shockwave washes over the house, blowing out all the windows.

A moment later, Hanna and Rob look at the scorched treeline, and utter a unified expletive.


	7. Chapter 7

"It's official," Hanna concludes, collecting fragments of glass from the bed-sheets. "Someone wants us dead."

"It certainly seems that way," Rob agrees, sweeping the debris from the bedroom floor. "The question though is who?"

"We know no-one survived me torching their compound," Hanna reminds.

"Except that medic-cop-person."

"She was undercover, trying to bring down the Ethereal. Plus, we saved her life."

"She wouldn't have been in danger if it wasn't for your pyromania."

"I seriously doubt she knows anything about my Crystal."

"I wouldn't be so sure; she'd have known you had it."

"But she wouldn't have known about my ability to use it."

Rob thinks for a moment. "I guess."

Hanna pauses. "Why do you seem so eager to implicate her in all this?"

"I'm not; I'm just exploring all the possibilities."

"Then shut up and keep sweeping."

Rob continues in silence; Hanna turns her attention back to clearing the bed.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, all the broken glass has been cleared away. Hanna is busy fixing some sheets to cover the door to the balcony; with no glass, the breeze is carrying some of the rain into the bedroom.

"I think it's best to sleep in the den tonight," Hanna suggests.

"We can keep the safe better protected down there too," Rob agrees, preparing to move the safe from the weapon chest.

"I call the sofa."

"Only if you help me set up on the floor."

"Fair enough." Hanna finishes fixing the sheets. "OK, I'm done here; let's get the safe moved." She joins Rob by the open weapon chest; together, they remove the safe, and carry it downstairs.

At the entrance to the den, Rob turns the light on. The entire floor of the den is covered in shattered glass; Hanna and Rob can only stare in disbelief.

"I've changed my mind," Rob sighs. "I think the safe will be fine where it was."


	8. Chapter 8

Hanna wakes early the next morning; a quick look around confirms that nothing has changed since returning to bed after the Elemental's attack. The sun has risen outside; the improvised window covering softens the incoming light, bathing the whole bedroom in a soft glow.

Feeling simultaneously relieved and on edge, Hanna quickly climbs out of bed, and wastes no time getting dressed. Double-checking the presence of the Fire Crystal, she selects her steel nunchaku from the weapon chest, and makes an inspection patrol of the entire house. Again, she finds that nothing has changed since the events of the previous night.

Crunching over the shattered glass, Hanna returns upstairs, pausing only to extract the shards from her shoes. Picking up a pair of binoculars, she drops a sheet from the window, and proceeds to the balcony. Leaning on the rail, she scans the treeline for incoming threats; apart from the scorching caused by the bomb, there's nothing out of the ordinary.

Retreating to the centre of the balcony, Hanna sits cross-legged; she removes the Fire Crystal from her double-baldric, and holds it up to peer into its depths.

* * *

Rob wakes late in the morning to find Hanna still sat on the balcony, staring into the Fire Crystal. Confused, he jumps out of bed, throws on his bathrobe, extracts the Metal Crystal from his own double‑baldric, and joins Hanna on the balcony. Sitting next to her, he waits for her to notice; a moment later, he can remain silent no more.

"How long have you been staring into that?" he asks.

"A few hours," Hanna replies monotonically.

"See anything interesting?"

"Define 'interesting'."

"The answer to the great question of life, the universe, and everything?"

"Don't be stupid."

Rob decides not to carry on; instead, he peers into the Metal Crystal.

"Please just tell me what you're doing," he sighs a few minutes later, lowering his Crystal.

"Wondering how to tap the power on demand."

"And you think you'll figure it out just by staring into it?"

Hanna breaks her stare; blinking furiously for a few seconds to force her eyes to refocus, she turns to Rob. "Got any better ideas?"

"We could go to the Shang Tu library."

"You already did that; you found nothing."

"True, but we know more about these Crystals now. And we know about the Elementals."

"Then you go to the library," Hanna suggests, resuming her stare into the Fire Crystal.

"Why do you want to be able to tap the power on demand?" Rob asks after a few moments' pause.

"It may come in handy."

"For what?"

Hanna doesn't answer; she simply grins in aggressive anticipation.


End file.
